AHP Anticipatory Action Trial
What is Anticipatory Action?
By shifting the focus of disaster response to the pre-crisis space, Anticipatory Action (AA) is allowing humanitarians and affected communities to make informed decisions ahead of disaster events – saving time and money; preventing displacement, disease, loss of livelihood; and preserving the dignity of those affected.
Throughout history, vulnerable communities have used ancestral knowledge and practices to protect their families, homes, and livelihoods from imminent disasters. Similarly, humanitarian actors have invested in emergency preparedness for decades, though progress has often been hampered by limited resources and competing priorities. AA builds on these approaches, by adding a new step in the traditional disaster management cycle.
What sets AA apart from preparedness is that activities and disbursement of funds are activated by a pre-agreed trigger – an indicator that a hazard is imminent and severe. Triggers are based on risk analysis and forecasts, with the goal of beginning interventions before a crisis escalates into a humanitarian emergency.
Critical to the success of AA is a ‘no regrets’ approach – if the AA mechanism is triggered but the disaster does not occur, it may not have the same preventative impact, but will still be valuable in reinforcing preparedness and learning.
There is a growing body of evidence that actions to support communities prior to an imminent hazard result in reduction of loss and livelihood and are a more cost-effective investment than responding after an event.
What is the AHP Anticipatory Action Fund?
AA has been trialled South Asia, Southeast Asia, Latin America and Africa and there is increasing interest in understanding the effectiveness of anticipatory actions in the Pacific and Timor-Leste, one of the world’s most disaster-prone regions.
Governments and development partners are now investing in regional and national systems to support Anticipatory Action in the Indo-Pacific.
With support from the Australian Government, the Australian Humanitarian Partnership is trialling an AHP Anticipatory Action Fund (AAF) to support communities to take protective actions prior to hazards.
The Disaster READY program, with its focus on preparedness, existing coordination mechanisms and relationships, is providing a strong base for the pilot.
Three expressions of interest have been selected for the initial trial: from Timor-Leste, Vanuatu and Papua New Guinea.
Disaster READY partners in trial countries have put together detailed proposals, each focusing on a particular hazard.